The Nexus chamber trembled violently, more violently than ever before. Kael's mark flared as paradox currents twisted around him, responding to an energy unlike anything he had encountered.
"This is it," Aria said, her voice steady but tense. "The Architect has begun the apex Convergence."
Veyra's shadows stretched outward, rippling like water against invisible obstacles. "Every reality is collapsing simultaneously. We have to stabilize them all—or everything falls."
Ryken's fists glowed with raw energy. "Then we hit first and hit hard. We don't wait for the Architect's next move."
Kael nodded, feeling the weight of responsibility pressing down on him. The room fractured into overlapping realities, each one distorted in impossible ways. Cities twisted into impossible angles, civilians screamed across collapsing streets, and shadows of alternate Kaels surged from every direction.
The Architect's voice reverberated through the multiverse:"Witness the apex, Kael. Strength, judgment, and morality will collide. Only the unbroken will survive."
Kael extended his mark, channeling paradox currents to stabilize the closest realities. Aria's light merged with his energy, forming protective barriers around civilians. Veyra's shadows moved like extensions of Kael's will, neutralizing rogue currents and redirecting collapsing structures. Ryken's strikes shattered paradox distortions, creating openings for Kael and the others to act.
But the assault was relentless. Alternate realities twisted violently, forcing Kael to split focus across multiple timelines at once. In one, civilians were trapped under falling debris; in another, a shadowed version of himself attacked Aria.
Kael's pulse surged. "We coordinate, we protect, and we strike," he muttered. His consciousness stretched across realities, bending energy to form harmonized threads that anchored collapsing timelines. Every move required split-second judgment, balancing morality, instinct, and raw power.
The Architect's presence pulsed, omnipresent and cold:"How will you endure, Kael, when the very essence of the multiverse turns against you?"
Kael's eyes flared. "By standing together. By never giving in. No matter the cost."